Authors : Akinfala Olalekan Victor

Volume/Issue : Volume 11 - 2026, Issue 4 - April

Google Scholar : https://tinyurl.com/bdm24r5x

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DOI : https://doi.org/10.38124/ijisrt/26apr815

Note : A published paper may take 4-5 working days from the publication date to appear in PlumX Metrics, Semantic Scholar, and ResearchGate.

Abstract : Social Media Marketing (SMM) is an arm of digital marketing that has revolutionised the business approach to identifying, attracting and retaining customers. This revolution is more critical in B2C eCommerce firms given the highlevel competition and ease of attrition. The last two decades in Nigeria witnessed an unprecedented utilisation of digital media tools to drive social media marketing in stimulating engagement, identify prospects, convert prospects to customers, and building customer loyalty. However, most B2C eCommerce firms in Nigeria are yet to break-even despite extensive investment in SMM which could be connected to high rate of attrition. Therefore, the objective of this research is to evaluate the impact of Social Media Marketing on Customer Loyalty among B2C eCommerce firms in Nigeria. The study framework explored components of social media marketing and leveraged social exchange theory which explains the reciprocal nature of customer-brand relationships in SMM. Relevant data was collected from 387 customers of B2C eCommerce firms in Nigeria via e-survey and was analysed using linear regression through SPSS v27. It was found that SMM has positive significant impact on Customer Loyalty among customers of B2C eCommerce firms in Nigeria. A breakdown of its components revealed mixed impact that SMM Interaction, e-Word-of-mouth Promotion, entertainment and customisation have positive and significant impact on customer loyalty among Nigeria B2C eCommerce firms’ users while Trendiness has negative but significant impact on customer loyalty Therefore, B2C firms are required to review entertainment, trendiness and customisation strategies by investing in personalisation and quality content while balancing entertainment with brand authenticity.

Keywords : Customer Loyalty, Social Media Marketing, B2C Ecommerce Firms, Entertainment, Customisation, Promotion, Interaction, Trendiness, E-Word-of-Mouth.

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